Assessment of the quantitative characterization of localized strain using electron diffraction contrast imaging

In state-of-the art development of more performant materials for advanced technologies often residual strain of submicrometer size plays an important role. Quantitative analysis of strain on such small scales is extremely difficult. In the present paper the use of electron diffraction contrast imaging for the quantitative analysis of localized strain is shown to be a feasible analysis method. Versatile image simulation software has been developed and numerical image comparison criteria are introduced. With these tools a case study is performed of a typical localized strain analysis problem: a coherent spheroidal particle. The results show that apart from the strain components themselves three parameters related to the diffraction conditions and specimen surface relaxation play an important role in quantifying the image interpretation procedure.